love is a battlefield
by lizziekiss
Summary: AU: Sesshomaru and Kagome have spent their entire lives circling around something great, always close, but never finding that higher meaning, will they one day find the love they have both been searching so desperately for? SESSxKAG
1. Chapter 1

**AN- I know its been too long since Ive posted something, and too long since I left a few of my other stories unfinished, but now im trying something diffrent. this story is alot shorter then some of my others, and its nearly completely written and ready to post. its about 95% done right now so you dont have to worry about me not finishing it!**

**Because im trying something different I would like critisim, tell me whats wrong, tell me how I can fix it, tell me what you would like to see in the up comming chapters! but also I will be posting this in little snippets, most likely around 1000-1500 words a chapter.**

An Introduction:

"They say that love is blind, they also say that love is a battlefield, well to be honest they _-Sang-_ that love was a battlefield, but where do we draw the line? Is love also a fickle creature? What about the fact that True love is: loving someone without needing them to love you back, its loving someone enough to let them go, and being miserable to keep the person you love happy, all at the same time mind you. So my question stands to ask, does love require you to be totally miserable and lonely, despite what everyone claims? If true love makes you happy then why do all the best advice and proverbs tell you that you must sacrifice for love? I want to be in love, I want to feel loved, are my wants unjustified?"

"So in finality I would like to say that one cannot describe love, how I love is vastly different from how my father loves, and even different from how you the reader loves, so to claim that love truly is anything is utter falsehood. I believe that love is an opinion, it is different each time you look at it, and it is changed and formed with every new experience."

-Excerpts from A thesis of love, written by Sesshomaru.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN- these chapters will jump around in time a bit, but I promise that they always jump fowards, never backwards.**

Sesshomaru was a fourth grader, and unfortunately he was a demon in a primarily human school. He kept to himself mostly, he thought humans below his notice, so far below his notice that he was nearly expelled from the school for informing his teacher that as a human she was unqualified to teach the class about the great demon alliance of the feudal era.

Recess was the worst part of the day for young Sesshomaru, during recess he was forced to not only see his younger half brother but to be surrounded by human children.

It was during one of these torture sessions also known as recess that Sesshomaru met the girl who would become known as His Miko. Sesshomaru's half breed younger brother Inuyasha, was a ruffian of a third grader that had taken to pushing around the second graders during recess, except for this time Inuyasha had managed to shove down the smallest and weakest second grader. Her name was Kagome, she was the youngest of the second graders and also was the most timid, Inuyasha had shoved her to the ground right in front of Sesshomaru.

The other children held their breath, Kagome was a brilliant student doted on by the teachers and she currently had the highest marks out of all the children her grade, everyone thought that messing with Kagome was sure to get Inuyasha kicked out of school. Sesshomaru approached the prone, crying form of Kagome, she assumed he was here to deliver the killing blow, she was in fact crying all over the tether ball court that he had claimed as his territory. To everyone's shock Sesshomaru swooped down like a valiant night and saved poor Kagome from the further wrath of Inuyasha and sent the Hanyou off to torment the other bigger second graders.

Unknown to Sesshomaru, Kagome had no friends. Unknown to Kagome Sesshomaru was far too busy and far too important to talk to anyone, espically weak pathetic humans. In the end, no matter how much Sesshomaru ignored the tiny human girl, she stayed glued to his side, always talking a mile a minuet.

Eventually Kagome graduated from tag along to full sidekick status, she could tell just from one look on sesshomarus face the exact moment when he would need chocolate milk, and she knew exactly which tether ball court to claim if she got to recess first.

Kagome was an incredibly playful girl and in the end Sesshomaru tolerated her presence, the day that Kagome cried her little eyes out when some of the other children claimed that she couldn't be on the same four square team as Sesshomaru was the day that they became friends.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN- I know Sess is very out of character, but I can handle that, being born in present day would make him a much diffrent person then in the manga/anime, but I still tried to keep his attitude and personality true to character.**

Middle school was a task, mostly for the fact that Sesshomaru did not have his adorable side kick with him when he went. He was two years older then his little miko so in the sixth grade when he went into middle school he had little to do, it gave him a bit of time to shine on his own.

He had no annoying little half brother to drag his good name down, and no one here knew him before his first day stepping foot into the doors of the school.

Sesshomaru liked middle school.

Until girls started to notice him, they would comment on how pretty his long platinum hair was, or how pristine he would keep his clothing, and these were the same girls that a few months ago in elementary school were still playing in the dirt.

Middle school made you grown up, and with his growing up he realized, that his Miko, that Kagome was somehow _-His Miko-_.

Sesshomaru watched the older kids begin to form relationships, watching as the foolish humans went about their strange courting rights, holding hands and passing notes to the members of the opposite sex, it was outright foolish.

Since the middle school and elementary school shared the same grounds on Fridays they had a common lunch hour, all the students went to the single lunch area to eat, and it was common to see children visiting with their older or younger siblings, what was uncommon was to see a small fourth grader lugging a huge bento box and a bottle of chocolate milk across the school yard before plopping down in the shade underneath the biggest tree in the school. Sesshomaru would meet her here, and they would share the meal in quiet silence.

This went on for several weeks, and slowly it became the main reason why Sesshomaru even worked to keep his grades up, failing children had to stay inside and study during the lunch hour. One Friday Sesshomaru had been asked to stay late by a teacher, and while the teacher was reprimanding Sesshomaru for not completing his assignments, a boy a year older then Sesshomaru was following Kagome across the school yard. The older boy had shoved Kagome down and began to pick apart the bento she had so lovingly prepared. When Sesshomaru had heard the faint sounds of Kagome crying he had bolted from the class room leaving his teacher to chase after him.

Sesshomaru's demon speed took him towards Kagome and her assailant in mere seconds, he tackled the older boy and straddled the much larger child's chest, before beginning to pummel him. Letting a tiny bit of his true anger and his demon strength into each hit, the sound of Kagome's sniffles and the scent of her tears driving him onwards. He nearly lost it when he realized she was bleeding, when the bully pushed Kagome she had fallen so hard she bit through her lip. Sesshomaru's words made the bully's blood run cold. _"I should kill you for making -My Miko- bleed."_

It was Kagome who spared the child's life, her tiny hand reached out to Sesshomaru, her tiny body trembling with the force of her tears, his urge to soothe her and quiet her crying had the normally silent and stoic Sesshomaru leaving the bruised bully to moan while he gathered the small girl in his arms. He had spoken softly to her as she wailed about the lunch now scattered on the ground, he plucked the bottle of chocolate milk from the ground and helped her hold it to her lips as she drank some.

When the teachers and the staff finally happened upon the scene they were quick to accuse Sesshomaru of being too mean, threatening to kick him out of school for injuring the other child.

Kagome untangled herself from Sesshomaru and for once did not behave like the shy child most saw her as, even with a bloodied mouth and grass all over her clothes she still managed to be incredibly pretty, near doll like, she showed the fiery temper that only Sesshomaru had ever seen. She told the teachers exactly what had happened, and being the star pupil that she was they took pity on her, such a gifted student always being bullied, and somehow she was able to make them see Sesshomaru as the valiant knight just like she did.

The next week Sesshomaru's step mother did the one thing that she never thought she would, she helped her step son pack a lunch, the young man always seemed so distasteful of her so she was glad to find any way that they could bond, after hours spent chatting in the kitchen they had created a bento lunch that any would be jealous of, there was even an extra large bottle of chocolate milk.

That Friday, under the hateful glare of the older boy who was still sporting a black eye, Sesshomaru laid out a bento fit for a queen, letting the young girl marvel over the amount of time he put into the effort.

That day after lunch Kagome stepped to her tip toes and gave Sesshomaru a brief peck on the cheek before thanking him for being her hero and running away squealing like all young girls do.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N- so how did you all like the last chapter? I added it in after posting the beginning to this story, I thought it would have been weird to skip from elemantry to high school without a single part inbetween. I would like to credit J-Chan Blue for being my inspriation for this chapter, I dont know why or how but this chapter made me think of her and her hubby... I mean I have seriously no idea why but whatever you all should just enjoy! and please review, I would like to know what you all are thinking.**

High school was an inevitable waste of time to Sesshomaru, he was already preparing his masters thesis for college while the other kids his age were worrying about their popularity.

His only friend Kagome was probably the only reason why he even stayed in school.

Kagome had grown up into a tomboy, it was most likely due to the fact that she was always trying to mimic Sesshomaru, and like him she mostly preferred to read and study then to worry about getting a boyfriend like the other girls her age. Kagome had become friends with Inuyasha during the single year that she and Inuyasha were in middle school together while Sesshomaru was already in high school, Inuyasha had taken over the task of protecting Kagome from bullies. It was his duty and he was honor bound to protect her in his brothers absence, they had become fast friends, Inuyasha was a lot like her underneath it all, luckily when Inuyasha went to high school so did all the bullies. Now in high school she still hung out with Inuyasha and his rag tag group of friends, but Sesshomaru who still preferred to keep to himself was never far from her sight. he kept a constant vigil for his dear Kagome, he even walked her to all of her classes like a silent guardian. It was not at all odd to see her break away from her friends to walk up and face the silent Sesshomaru, they would say nothing just simply look each other in the eyes for several seconds before Kagome would smile like they had passed some joke between them.

Kagome had once told her best female friend Sango that she could read Sesshomaru better then anyone else could, all everyone else saw was a stiff emotionless mask, but Kagome could read those blank stares like each single one was a novel in itself. Sesshomaru knew that Kagome could read him, and he didn't mind that fact, his step mother often knew his moods as well, and it only helped to smooth over the gap between the two of them.

Fridays were the one day that he would indulge her little whims, every Friday since she had gotten into high school, she had resumed the tradition of bringing lunch. She would bring two bento boxes each one was artfully prepared with only Sesshomaru's favorite things. The odd pair would sit in the grass in front of the school under the shade of a huge tree and eat in a companionable silence. Well as silent as Kagome could be, she would chatter away softly as the pair passed a single bottle of chocolate milk back and forth. Somewhere along the line they had ingrained the beverage deeply into their friendship, Kagome still remembered the time as a child when Sesshomaru had held her so tightly to his chest, helping her to drink the cool milk. Anyone spying on the pair would be simply astonished when the meal was winding down and Sesshomaru and Kagome would bicker over who would get the last drink of the milk, sometimes each would claim it for themselves other times they would each insist that the other have it, no matter how long the fight went on for, the last drink was always tossed away to spare their friendship and end the argument.

When Sesshomaru was a senior, he was dreading prom, while he had refused to go to any school functions it seemed that according to his parents he was not getting out of this one, he had planned on making a surprise visit to the shrine that Kagome lived at and having a picnic under the shade of the goshinboku while his class mates were at prom worrying about the states of their virginities, but his parents easily put an end to that fantasy. They thought that as a young man of his stature he should go to at least this event, it was a milestone in his young life that he shouldn't miss out on. His father suggested he take the daughter of a business partner, granted Kaugra was beautiful and a powerful demoness in her own right, but she could not hold a candle to the girl that Sesshomaru had so deeply devoted to him already, he didn't know if his official fan club could stand to have more members then just Kagome.

The worst part of it all was the fact that nearly all of the schools female population was eagerly awaiting the news of who he was going to ask. Apparently the unofficial fan club were all desperate to get the affection of the incredibly smart and enigmatic Sesshomaru. In the end his step mother had come to the rescue, she had taken him to the mall to get a tux for the occasion and had passed a dress shop claiming _"wouldn't that dress look just stunning on Kagome? Just think, it's the exact color to match your tux."_

Sesshomaru had gone the conservative path and picked a traditional black tux, but his shirt had been a deep blue to match the crescent moon on his forehead, it was a clear symbol of his house and his heritage, for the first time in his life he wanted to fully proclaim who he was. His step mother had even gifted him a tie that represented his station in life, it was a pristine white silk tie and it was decorated with hand embroidered Sakura petals. Sesshomaru found it quite fitting, his family once claimed the western lands and even back to the feudal era it was traditional for the lord of the west to wear a white kimono adorned with the same sort of cherry blossoms that were painstakingly sewed into that tie. The dress that his step mother pointed out was the exact same shade of dark blue to match his crescent moon and the dress shirt he had picked out, it however had a high empire waist, and belted around the waist of the dress was a wide white ribbon. The skirt of the dress had a single slit in the front, carefully pinned and sewed to show the white under skirt, the under skirt was embroidered with the same cherry blossom petals that sesshomarus tie was. Something about that dress called to him, they would match so beautifully together, like the lord and the lady of the west. While he assured his step mother he was only going to bring Kagome because she would be sure not to embarrass him, he wondered to himself if that was the only reason.

He bought that beautiful dress on the spot without even speaking to Kagome, he just guessed her size and forbade the shop owners to sell any more of those dresses to any other girls from his school. He would have bought every single one if that's what it took to make sure that no other girls would wear the same one as his precious Miko.

That same night Sesshomaru had made his way to the shrine to inform Kagome and her parents that he was going to take her to prom, her parents were happy for their little girl, and her mother was already wondering what it would look like to see her tomboy daughter in a dress after so many years. Her father however was honest when he asked how much a prom dress would cost, he wanted his daughter to have this experience and he sure wanted to see his baby girl dressed up like a princess but he didn't think their family could afford a dress like that. Sesshomaru shocked everyone when he ran out to his car and returned with the dress in hand, Kagome was sure that she couldn't take such an expensive gift and tried to politely decline. In a very uncharacteristic move Sesshomaru asked Kagome's mother to force her daughter to wear it, smiling when he said that Kagome could return the gift after the prom. When they were sitting out on the shrine steps later he told her that he was sure she would turn a lot of heads with how beautiful she would look dressed like the lady of the west, he was inwardly pleased at the way a blush tinted her cheeks.

When the big night came, Kagome was inwardly pleased to see Sesshomaru stunned speechless when he got a good eyeful of how her dress clung to her body in a way that was nearly sinful, showing off curves that no one even knew she had. He had always been a bit posessive of Kagome, never wanting anyone to do her any harm, but this night as he led her down the steps of the shrine and into the waiting limo, something stirred deep inside of him, the beast deep inside said only one word as his hand engulfed Kagome's.

That word was _-Mine-._

Not a single person that night was shocked when it became clear that Kagome would not be dancing with anyone except for the normally icy Sesshomaru.


	5. Chapter 5

**AN- Im so sorry but once again sesshomaru seems a bit out of character, but I have to admit, in the anime sesshomaru acted a bit different towards rin, I just always assumed that he might feel alot diffrent then he was willing to express... so while the sesshomaru in my story might think things that are not true to the character I try to keep him acting in character as much as possisable, there is no way that sesshomaru would just up and declare his love for a human, not happening no matter how much any of you beg. anyways I hope you all enjoy, and while I was origionally only going to have two more chapters after this one my muse gave me a shot of inspiration and im pumping out a few more chapters then I expected. enjoy!**

When Kagome was a senior, Sesshomaru was a sophomore in college and had already been away from home for two years, the second year of his college life would have been a lot harder if not for the near daily calls from Kagome. She would call and chatter away for a random length of time, keeping Sesshomaru up to date about anything and everything in her life, Sesshomaru would reply with a random "hnn" here and there, occasionally interrupting with a few words of his own, but that was about it. They of course emailed each other near daily, Kagome's emails would be full of little emoticons and funny jokes she thought would amuse Sesshomaru, while the stoic Inu would write in great length and detail about university life and his studies.

Around spring break Sesshomaru noticed that the calls were beginning to become less and less frequent, the emails even became few and far between, most seemed to be forwards of things other people sent to her instead of the painstakingly searched for antidotes that she once sent. while he never admitted it, waiting for her calls nearly kept him from studying for his finals, in a desperate measure to calm his irrational worry he actually called Kagome. He could have demanded to know why she wasn't calling, but he was too happy to hear her voice to even remember his previous anger. He simply asked her how everything was going because he hadn't heard from her in a while, but to him he felt like he was begging her to tell him what he had been missing out on in her life while he was gone. When she realized that his finals were nearly upon him she offered study advice to Sesshomaru that he blew off as a petty human need, but secretly he followed it to the letter, he quickly made up for lost time and passed his finals with flying colors.

Sesshomaru debated going home for his summer break, he knew that Inuyasha was still living at home because the Hanyou had decided to take a year off before going to a university across the country. he was not fond of spending so much time under the same roof as his brother and would rather use his summer to explore his love for journalism, while he was a business major he had hoped to maybe write articles in his spare time, and if writing to Kagome had proved anything, it was that he was a very eloquent author. He changed his mind the day that Kagome called him distressed, he had been napping when she called and her voice full of unshed tears and clear agony drove his mind to an all new form of clarity. she cried over the phone as soon as Sesshomaru asked her what was wrong, his voice smooth and soft, not anything at all like the normal cold tone he usually spoke in. when pressed Kagome explained that her lack of consistent calling had been due to the fact that she was seeing a boy in her grade named Hojo, he had asked her to go to prom with him and had been what she claimed was a very doting boyfriend, but suddenly for reasons unknown to her, he broke up with her and told her she needed a new prom date. Sesshomaru assumed that it had something to do with the fact that the ever overprotective Inuyasha had once before expressed his disgust towards Hojo, who the Hanyou referred to as 'that quivering mass of human flesh' Inuyasha had claimed that hojo was always a bit too concerned with Kagome's welfare seemingly trying to fill the void Sesshomaru had left behind in her life when he left for college.

Sesshomaru simply told her to get two tickets to prom and pick him out a tux.

Two years prior Sesshomaru and Kagome had gone to his senior prom and had been a vision of elegance, to this day he still carried the picture of them in his wallet, a beautiful reminder of the night that they had paraded as the lord and lady of the west. However Kagome's senior prom was a sight to behold, she had picked him out a brilliant white tux, complete with what she had referred to as a 'pimp hat', once again he wore his white tie with the Sakura blossoms but instead of a white vest Kagome had paired it with a blood red vest, that stood out against the white undershirt. for some reason he felt like they were dressing for battle. the dress she wore was nearly scandalous showing off the full expanse of her back, strangely enough he thought that her dress seemed to be some take on the traditional miko garb. the bodice was a startling white, where the bodice met the skirt there sat a wide silk ribbon, specked with red embroidered Sakura petals and the skirt itself was a startling red. There was also no way to describe the amazing shoes she was managing to walk around in, luckily Sesshomaru had been the only one to see them, he had helped her to lace the straps up over her creamy calves to tie behind her knees.

the entire night she clung to Sesshomaru like she was his second skin. While he knew that her actions were most likely a bid to make hojo jealous, Sesshomaru still took pleasure from the fact that several men in attendance looked at him like they wished they were in his shoes. Never before had anyone see the ever innocent and studious Kagome act anything other then demure. When Sesshomaru led Kagome to the dance floor they easily took the spot light, their bodies moving in a sensual dance that was at the same time totally proper and incredibly erotic.

Sesshomaru drove her home that night, and for once played the part of the proper date, taking the time to walk her up the massive set of stairs to the shrine, when they reached the small courtyard she pulled him aside dragging him to the bench outside the well house, they even shared a laugh as they remembered the days as children that they would imagine the well could transport them to the days of lords and ladies, and they would play their little 'feudal era' game until the sun went down. As they sat there reminiscing Kagome wound her hand into sesshomarus, she had a confession to make.

Sesshomaru's heart had never beaten so fast in his life, there was so much hidden in her soft voice, so many promises and wants that lingered on the tip of her tongue, her first confession was that she couldn't afford to go to the prestigious university that she had been so happy to be accepted to, Sesshomaru's heart clenched, inwardly thrilled that _-His Miko-_ would not be flying all the way to England to pursue her education. Her second confession was that she wanted to go to a local college, one that would offer her classes to learn to control her Miko powers, it was a good school, highly awarded, but it was in fact a religious school, teaching the old ways of the Miko's and monks.

Lastly she confessed that she was worried she would loose the man seated beside her, they had both always known about Kagome's Miko powers, her purity was so startling obvious that it was clearly engrained into her scent, in fact Sesshomaru had been referring to her as _-His Miko- _for so long that everyone knew who he was talking about when he said it. He was happy that she was seemingly asking his permission to become a Miko. He knew that the spiritual community was highly biased, they would find a way to turn her against him, to make her understand that a being as pure as she was should never associate with demons. The demon population was seemingly born with a blight upon them, maybe it was their animalistic senses and instincts that kept them from holding a higher level of innocence like Kagome had.

Sesshomaru had kissed Kagome before, a brief peck here and there, a brotherly brushing of the lips on her cheek for family photos, but never before had he thoroughly claimed her lips, and he certainly had never explored that little heart shaped mouth the way he wanted to. Tonight was different, tonight there was a sense of urgency that was nearly terrifying, soon she would become his natural enemy.

He thought it was better to have loved and lost because there was no way that she would have anything to do with him once she went through Miko training, they would brain wash her and _-His Miko-_ would become 'the Miko that was his once'. his hands reached up to pull the pins from her hair, letting her wavy tresses tumble down onto her shoulders, his fingers wound into her hair at the nape of her neck as he tilted her face to his. He claimed her lips then, at first it was just a simple touch of his lips to hers, but when she sighed into his mouth and leaned into him, he couldn't control himself, his lips moved eagerly against hers, confessing all the things that he would never say. He tried to pull away but her hands on his face pulled him back to her, he opened his mouth to argue with her but she took it as an invitation and let her little pink tongue dart past his lips to explore his mouth.

There was no going back now, his free hand found its way to the small of her back and he was failing miserably at ignoring just how silky smooth every inch of her skin was. He pulled her against him and met her kiss with equal fervor, their tongues battling for dominance in a kiss that was just a simple exploration. They didn't rush, just let their bodies settle into a dance that had been a long time coming.

Sesshomaru pulled away when the scent of Kagome's desire became overpowering, in his mind he -needed- to leave her wanting, she would be his as long as she desired him, and none would be able to sway her opinions. She had blinked up at him breathlessly for several long seconds as he unwound himself from her body, he laid a tender kiss on her forehead and simply walked away towards the shrine steps, vaguely he heard her speak but couldn't make sense of it.

It wasn't until he had made it half way down the stairs that he processed what she had said her words her simple, _"no matter what kind of Miko I become, nor how much they say that Yokai are my enemy, you will always be the one Yokai that I will never turn my back on"_


	6. Chapter 6

**AN- I know that this chapter is a bit shorter then the last couple but I wanted to say that they all were supposed to be this short -lol- I just happened to get a little crazy with embelishing the chapters when I begain to edit them. Im not fishing for reviews, but I would like to know if there is any thing that anyone would like to see? or should I just pump out an and in the next chapter or so?**

The summer after Kagome graduated high school, she spent nearly the entire summer at Sesshomaru's family home, there were long summer days lounging around the pool, and long humid nights spent laying in the tall grasses looking at stars.

Sesshomaru didn't spend as much time as he could have with Kagome that summer, he started his first job, interning for the company his father owned, he was so busy he didn't even know that his little brother was carrying on a summer romance with Kagome while he was working. They didn't hide their relationship outright, but neither of them were willing to let Sesshomaru know that something was going on behind his back, he heard the rumors but was just blind to it, never admitting to himself that he thought there was something going on between _-His Miko-_ and his half breed little brother.

Sadly Kagome had fallen in love with the always brash Inuyasha, she knew he was going to go away when fall came around but she was willing to wait for him to come home, somewhere deep inside she knew that things would not turn out that way. Two weeks before the semester started Inuyasha began packing his things getting ready to set out on his own for the first time, Kagome was helping him pack away his warm winter clothing when he told her he was breaking it off. She accepted it, she understood that there would be temptation seeing as he would be across the country. A few days later when she showed up to his farewell party he pulled her aside to speak to her in private, he told her that she shouldn't wait for him, he wanted to explore the women that his new city had to offer. She still smiled knowing that he would come home eventually and he had to set her straight, he broke her heart by telling her that what he had with her was only a summer romance, they would never continue their relationship, he had just wanted one last home town fling before he set out for the unknown. Kagome thanked him for bring honest but silently she mourned her first real love.

Kagome had been utterly distant for the days after Inuyasha left, and with only a week before Sesshomaru went back to school he had to find out what was wrong. Once again the cold and seemingly heartless man exposed just a bit of his more tender side one day, he took Kagome for a picnik and as they lay side by side on the blanket watching the clouds go by he asked what was wrong with her.

She came clean about the affair, and as much as it tore Sesshomaru apart to know that someone else had found a place in her heart it was worse knowing that she berated herself for keeping a secret from him. she had gone behind his back to carry on an illicit relationship with his half brother and her fear that he would cast her aside because of it kept him from even being angry. Kagome cried when she admitted that she was trying to spare Sesshomaru's feelings by keeping everything away from him.

Sesshomaru tucked the crying Miko against his side, holding her close as the sun set in the distance, as dusk found its way into the sky and led slowly into night Kagome spoke all about the summer romance with Inuyasha, she was baring her soul to Sesshomaru, and as she slowly realized that there would have never been a future between her and the Hanyou she found that she had given her heart to the wrong brother.

He was angry that his little brother had broken Kagome's heart, but in a desperate need to claim the broken pieces for himself he asked her to wait for him, he wanted her to wait for him to come home from his studies in the same way she had been willing to wait for his brother. When she agreed she understood that there were far more differences between the silver haired brothers then similarities.


	7. Chapter 7

**AN- I know this is SUPER short but it didnt really fit with the previous chapter or the chapter afterwards... so here it is!**

When Sesshomaru graduated college he received two gifts, the first was his fathers company, he had proven himself able to run it successfully when he interned there during his summers at home, and had always managed to step up to the helm when needed in his fathers absence. once he finished his education and brought home a business degree his father deemed him ready to carry on the legacy by taking over the family company.

His second gift was a watch from Kagome, it was an expensive watch that she had saved up for, who knows how long it took her to carefully pinch every penny so that she could afford it. It was a well crafted watch, and the face of it held a design that was dear to Sesshomaru's heart, it was of a Sakura tree with the petals blowing in the breeze, somehow the flowered watch kept its masculinity, the best part was the message engraved into the back it read:

__

-may only the greatest success come to the Lord of the West-

Kagome had learned that all Inu demons were descendants of the great Inu lord of the west, and Sesshomaru and his family owned a summer home that was once the western fortress, it was a great honor for Kagome to understand just how much his lineage meant to him, and while he could never claim the western lands for himself, he could look down at his watch and pretend for a few moments.


	8. Chapter 8

**AN- another short chapter I know, but I figure Im entitled to post a short one seeing as this is the fourth chapter ive posted today. I would like to thank my reviewers.**

Sesshomaru had only been running his fathers company for a few short months when a sudden tragedy struck, his young secretary passed away tragically, leaving her young baby with no one to take care of her.

During the young woman's lunch hour she had driven a few blocks away to pay a bill and on the way back had been involved in a horrible traffic accident, the other employees had seen the coverage on the news and easily identified their coworker, when the office was closing and all the people were heading home with their heads hung low and sorrow in their hearts over the loss of such a brilliant young mother. Her babysitter had shown up carrying the drooling infant. The baby sitter was utterly shocked when she found out about the secretaries untimely death. There was no one to take the baby.

Sesshomaru felt responsible for the child in some way, but was at a loss for what to do, he called the only person he could turn to for advice, he called Kagome, he knew she would be at the shrine, she helped out there after school. Kagome had swooped in like a matronly angel, taking care of the child and even filling out the paper work to make her a ward of the family shrine, it happened often, they would take in a small child left in a basket on their door step, and either find the child a good family or take care of it until their family came looking for the child.

After a few days of Kagome caring for the child, reaching out into her community to find any family that the beautiful girl child may have without any luck, she did what she thought was best.

Kagome asked Sesshomaru to adopt the small fragile child, she claimed that he was the one who knew the mother best and was the only one who could give the little princess the life she deserved. Kagome refused to admit that she had fallen in love with the precious baby girl and wanted to be able to provide a stable home for the young child. Sesshomaru in turn failed to admit that he desperately wanted to raise this baby, he however had images of a perfect family, with Kagome playing the part of a stay at home mother. Kagome only made Sesshomaru's fantasy more poignant as she slaved over the child, changing diapers and making bottles while Sesshomaru put an ad in the paper for a nanny.

The day they finally hired a proper nanny was the day that the beautiful child Rin said her first word. Sesshomaru gazed in awe as Rin reached out to tug on a few strands of Kagome's hair saying a single word _"Mama"_


	9. Chapter 9

**AN-I know... again with the short chapters, but I swear, the next chapter is much longer... also I would like to thank Elemental573- your review was totally cute, I posted this chapter tonight just for you [a bit of fluff goes a long way right?]**

Ever since that fateful day in the fourth grade Kagome had been a consistent part of Sesshomaru's life, ir became blatantly oblivious how big of a role she held in his life when she began watching Rin on Fridays so that the nanny could have a day off. Kaede was a wonderful nanny, a wise old woman who seemed to love caring for Rin, her entire aura just oozed matronly vibes, but no matter how much she loved her job she still enjoyed having Fridays to herself.

Every Friday Sesshomaru would drop Rin off at the shrine Kagome lived at on his way to the office, he never knew what Kagome did to keep the child occupied during the day but he assumed that a good portion of time was spent picking flowers and doing things that only a mother would do with her daughter. He desperately wanted to ask, to find out just exactly how Kagome kept the child entertained without any toys.

Friday lunch had become a tradition once again, at midday Kagome would show up at Sesshomaru's office a picnic basket in one hand and with Rin in tow, she would trample in and demand to see Sesshomaru. Often times she would become embroiled with a friendly argument with his assistant Jakken for a few moments before simply pushing past the annoying little toad then barging into the office to drag Sesshomaru out willing or not. These Family meals were something the fiery spirited Kagome thought so important to Rin's upbringing that she would fight tooth and nail to make sure they went off without a hitch. True to her nature, the tender hearted part of her always made sure that there was extra apple sauce for Rin and a single bottle of chocolate milk to share with Sesshomaru.

Even as adults they still bickered over who got the last sip from the bottle, the only difference was now they fought over who would get the privilege of helping Rin drink the last sip.


	10. Chapter 10

**AN- there is more speaking in this chapter then I would have liked, im really trying to go without them speaking as much as possisable, but even thought I didnt update for a day or two I am still very committed to this story! BTW, I did up the rating on this story, I thought since there are now adult themes that it shouldnt be a T rating... there isint anything dirty at all but still better to be safe then sorry.**

It was spring and Kagome was in her third year of college when she won a prestigious award for her poetry, and while she was shy to share her winning poem with Sesshomaru she was quick to agree to a celebratory dinner at his parents house none the less. He wanted to show his parents the woman she had become, he would deny it when they asked, but he was subconsciously seeking their approval.

They had just made their way into the grand foyer of the estate that Sesshomaru had grown up at when his step mother made an announcement that turned the happy mood somber. _"your brother is on his way home, he's finally spending a spring break away from Hiroshima!"_

Kagome was a bit uneasy about facing Inuyasha after all this time, while she was no longer in love with him, the fact that he had been her first love and her first real heart break had been something that was like a still raw wound. She did not want to deal with those feelings right now, not only was she in front of Sesshomaru and his precious daughter, but she was supposed to be celebrating!

Sesshomaru's parents made idle chit chat, watching their adopted grand child playing in the flowers in the back yard, Sesshomaru and Kagome seemed to play the part of doting parents, gushing and going on about what their little jewel had done to earn their eternal devotion this week.

When the doorbell rang Sesshomaru gathered up Rin and led everyone inside to greet Inuyasha.

Kagome was inwardly hurt to see that he had brought home his new girlfriend, she was outwardly appalled when she realized that he had brought home the only person she knew in Hiroshima, her cousin Kikyo. Kagome had spent her whole life being compared to her beautiful city living cousin. While Kagome lived in a city as well, she did in fact live in a shrine, surrounded by a lush amount of foliage, it was nearly a farm compared to the upscale apartment that Kikyo and her family lived in.

Kikyo was a Miko as well, but went to a special high school to learn her Miko powers, she was one of the most powerful in the entire nation. To be honest, Kagome had spent her entire life thinking that Kikyo was just better at everything, a better Miko, a better student, Kikyo was more popular and more beautiful as well.

It was heartbreaking to see that Inuyasha had left Kagome only to find what Kagome thought was a better version of herself.

After making greetings, and introducing her city cousin to the group gathered for dinner Kagome had slipped out into the back yard, running as fast as her human legs could take her, she needed to get away from the image inside, it was too painful, she thought she would have gotten time to make her peace with Inuyasha before being made to watch as he paraded his newest conquests in front of her face. To make matters worse she had seen the way everyone's eyes lit up when Kikyo spoke a bit about her accomplishments, she however didn't know that the excited and happy looks on their faces were truly due to Inuyasha's ability to finally date another classy girl. The stories about the women the Hanyou didn't bring home were nearly terrifying.

Sesshomaru had watched her exit and handed his daughter to his step mother and given chase.

Kagome was easy enough to find, the scent of her tears was easier to follow then a bread crumb trail. When she realized she was being followed Kagome ran faster, whispering into the wind that she only wanted to be left alone. Sesshomaru had not been able to keep from letting his instincts take control, before she had a chance to make it any further towards the river he had tackled her, his demonic speed let him twirl her around in his arms before gently laying her down into the tall grass, he pinned her body down with his own as his hands moved to wipe away her tears. He was once again acting uncharacteristically, but in his mind, Kagome belonged to him, as did Rin, and he would do whatever it took to protect them.

He didn't need to ask, but she knew that he wanted to know why she was running away, once again she bared her soul to Sesshomaru, explained all of her insecurities and fears, he of course had assured her that she was indeed the better person, because while she didn't have a love for fashion and style like her city born cousin, a warm heart and her never ending compassion were always going to be in fashion.

They stared into each others eyes, looking for answers for a long time before Sesshomaru finally realized just how good it felt to be cradled in Kagome's embrace, when he had taken her to the ground, her legs had instinctively wrapped around his hips, it was such an intimate position that they stayed in here in the long grasses. There were many times that the seemingly unfeeling Yokai had wanted this very moment, several times that he had imagined the way that it would feel to have his body nestled so perfectly against Kagome's. He understood that he could have had her before, for a long time now he had known that if he had simply asked her for it, she would have willingly given him her innocence.

As much as Sesshomaru secretly wanted to indulge himself he never did, to taste the temptation that was Kagome's skin he would have to admit not only to himself but also to her that he was affected by his baser instincts and desires, having her could never be dismissed with a drunken night or a bad mistake, that would be a sin too big for the already tainted demon to repent for.

When Kagome had stopped crying she said one thing that made Sesshomaru's heart beat wildly in his chest _"I've got the better end of the deal, Inuyasha might have Kikyo, but they both pale in comparison to the fact that I've got you"_

Sesshomaru had claimed her lips in a single swoop, her body had responded and as the passion escalated neither seemed able to stop it. Their hands were hungry as their lips and tongues battled for dominance in a kiss that was so searing and intense that it was like it was branding their souls. Sesshomaru took little notice when Kagome had finally worked the buttons of his shirt loose and began to explore the muscles and pale expanses of skin hidden underneath. His mind was still in a fog as he pulled his lips away from Kagome's to watch as he lifted her shirt, exposing her skin to his eyes, as impatient hands had shoved her bra up to expose perky nipples to his mouth.

Sesshomaru didn't have a single coherent thought until he felt Kagome's always cold hands dip into his pants searching out the most prominent proof that he was male. He gently pried her hands from his body, pulling her clothing back into place before trying to blink the lusty crimson shade from his eyes.

He would have liked to tell her that she was foolish for thinking he would have let her touch him so intimately, he wanted to tell her that she was insane for thinking he would stoop so low as to take a human as a lover, while there were several reasons why he didn't, there were only a few reasons why he couldn't. firstly, he was positively thrilled at the way she smelled with his scent lingering on her heated skin. Secondly, the look that crossed over her face when she thought she was being flat out rejected was so painful he nearly whimpered.

Sesshomaru was not a romantic man, in fact he wasn't even a man who ran on his urges, he preferred to be alone rather then deal with the ever changing moods of the opposite sex. His weak spot always had been Kagome, and now more then ever, he was honored that she had offered herself to him, and nearly saddened by the fact that he needed to turn down that gracious offer. He kissed her again, and gone was the frantic pace, instead he kissed her softly, his near romantic kisses calming _-His Miko-_ more then any words could. He eventually explained that she was a Miko, it was her duty to stay pure, and to stay far away from a Miko's natural enemy- Yokai.

His words to her as he helped her to her feet gave her a new found hope _"you deserve much better for your first time, you deserve better then some demon stealing you away to a field to claim you, rutting like some sort of animal, Kagome you deserve candles, flower petals and everything else truly romantic."_

The cold unfeeling Inu tried to tell himself that this was for the best. Kagome was the sun while he was the moon, the two while a perfectly opposite pair, were just as different as night and day, they were supposed to stay an entire world away from each other.

Sesshomaru would claim that the world would have stopped spinning were the sun and the moon to ever find each other, causing world wide repercussions.

Kagome would have described it like an eclipse, something breathtaking and unforgettable, she would have claimed a yin yang to be a symbol of the love between the sun and the moon, perfectly balanced.


	11. Chapter 11

**AN- the second update today! yay! and good news, there should be about 10 more chapters to this story before its done.**

It had been over a year since that wonderful night under the stars, that night Kagome had almost become his, unfortunately as much as Sesshomaru tried to change things between the two of them, his increasingly hectic schedule had kept him from spending any time with Kagome.

His company was trying to make a merger with a company on the other side of the planet, and he spent a lot of long nights holding web cam meetings with his associates from the other side of the globe, as time progressed he was hardly seeing his little girl anymore due to his always changing schedule.

Kaede had been nice enough to work with him around his schedule, but tonight there was no miracle to be worked, kaede had her own family to tend to. Sesshomaru knew that he needed this deal approved and he knew he needed to have a long needed night at home watching movies with his little jewel.

Kouga was the newest member of Sesshomaru's elite team, Kouga was a wolf that had grown up locally and gotten into a prestigious business school, he was a great asset, and tonight he would be calling the shots, Sesshomaru made his way into the office asking the wolf if he could stay late to deal with the meetings. Kouga's pained expression was all the answer that the Inu lord got for several long moments. Kouga politely explained that he had plans that he simply could not cancel on again.

Sesshomaru was too irritated to even argue the point, at least Kouga had someone to make plans with. Somewhere deep inside Sesshomaru shoved down the twinge of jealousy he felt knowing that Kouga would be spending his evening with a beautiful woman while Sesshomaru would sleep alone once again.

Sesshomaru dialed Kagome's number from memory, asking if she would watch Rin for a few hours, he smiled softly when Kagome eagerly dropped her plans to spend time with the young girl she nearly considered her own.

Sesshomaru didn't know how much time had passed before Kouga made his way into the conference room, his shoulders sagged as he offered to let Sesshomaru get home to his little girl, his date had canceled on him.

Sesshomaru was gathering his things from his office when he heard Kagome and Rin making their way to his office carrying steaming take out boxes, they had brought dinner, he smiled softly, a smile that was reserved solely for the two women currently worried about the state of his dinner, his smile quickly turned into a frown when he watched Kouga assault _-His Miko-_ the kiss to her cheek was innocent enough in her eyes, and she was shocked that Kouga even worked here. Kouga was an utter gentleman offering to take the steaming food from Kagome's hands, the wolf had misinterpreted dinner, he thought that Kagome was bringing dinner since she had canceled their date. When Kagome laughed nervously and told kouga that she and Rin had brought dinner for Sesshomaru, the wolf became a bit agitated, when he realized that Sesshomaru was the reason he was currently not having dinner with this beautiful Miko, he became angry.

Kagome pushed past Kouga and headed Sesshomaru's office, easily setting down the food with a grace that told the story of how many times she had truly done this very motion. The wolf asked questions, wondering the extent of her relationship with Sesshomaru and soon enough it escalated into an argument, one growl from Sesshomaru and Kouga stormed off. Kagome was far too angry to let the hurtful things Kouga said be brushed away so she followed, Sesshomaru tried hard not to eavesdrop but they were shouting so loudly that even Rin with her human hearing could hear them.

Kouga and Kagome argued over the fact that they both had wildly different opinions of their relationship, while Kouga had thought that they were still in the 'getting to know each other' part of the relationship, Kagome had been unaware there was any relationship at all, she thought they were simply two friends going out for dinner.

When Kouga made very loud assumptions about the relationship between her and Sesshomaru and most of all Rin, Sesshomaru had to cover his daughters ears, he had never heard Kagome use such colorful language before.

Several minuets passed before a teary eyed Kagome found her way back to the office, she took comfort in Rin's embrace and something deep inside of Sesshomaru stirred. He dragged the two females out of his office, dropping his daughter off at his parents house he simply kidnapped Kagome, he wanted a bit of time with her, just her. There were so many things that Sesshomaru wanted to say, but there were more things that he could not even admit to himself, how would he ever tell _-His Miko-_ what he felt if he was still scared and unsure.

So for once the cold demon let his actions do the talking for him, he whisked Kagome away to a nearby fair, and for the first time in a long time he paused to ask her to braid his hair. Kagome looked up at the silver haired Inu confused, but joy overtook her once sad features when he explained that he wanted to ride the Ferris wheel with her. Normally she would have to beg and plead just to get him to wait in line with her for the Ferris wheel, it was utterly insane that he _-wanted-_ to ride it with her.

Kagome tried to get an answer out of him, she wanted to know just what exactly compelled him to blow off work, ask his parents to watch Rin and steal her away to ride the Ferris wheel at the fair.

He had no answer, he told her with as few words as possible that he was going to ride the Ferris wheel because she enjoyed it, but she didn't seem to understand what he meant until he laced his long fingers with hers, bringing their clasped hands to his lips and gently kissing her knuckles.

This moment, it was so romantic, so utterly perfect that anyone viewing the oddly matched couple would have sworn that this was the reason why they said that opposites attract.


	12. Chapter 12

**AN- I wanted to have this update posted yesterday but I decided to rework this chapter because of a request, J-Chan wanted to see a bit of the sango/miroku relationship so here it is! even with a dash of Naraku! this chapter is dedicated to my heart sister, J-chan.**

A week later found Kagome enjoying the subtle shift in her relationship with Sesshomaru, she was not "dating" Sesshomaru, and they were not in a "relationship" but somewhere along the line, it was a comfortable shift and it left each of them with a more happy demeanor.

The only problem was while Sesshomaru had won over the company from across the seas, and they successfully created a merger, he was sure that something was amiss in his financial department. There were several things that just didn't add up correctly, and to be totally honest he didn't really trust any of his accountants, they all seemed like very strange and seemingly oily people who only crunched numbers because they had no chance at a social life.

Kagome was his saving grace once more, while she had gone to school for Miko's to train her latent abilities, she of course studied a more practical course while there, she did not feel destined to become a shrine maiden for the rest of her life, regardless of how rewarding she found shrine life to be. Even thought she had struggled in her school days with math, she had somehow found a calling to numbers in college, maybe maturity worked wonders when it came to long division. There would always be jobs waiting for accountants, whether corporate or private, there were even decent paying bank jobs too, because as long as there was money there would be a need for math.

The family shrine that Kagome grew up at was struggling, every few years they went through a lean time, and this just so happened to be the first time that her mother had let her in on her family's struggles. While Sesshomaru's family had been known to donate regularly to the shrine, it just didn't seem to be enough to keep the shrine in the black. As the stress of all the debt the shrine amassed over a year began to weigh heavily on Kagome, there was only one thing in her mind that she could do, work harder.

Sesshomaru knew the shrine was in trouble, and he offered her a large sum of money, enough to keep the place afloat for a few years and get some much needed repairs done. Kagome refused politely and then asked for help to write a resume, after rattling off a list of her skills, Sesshomaru hired her on the spot as his new lead accountant. He refused to admit it, but he created that position just for her, he even took her out and bought her a few professional outfits to work in. he needed her now more then ever, he knew that if something was going on in his company, she would find it. To be honest if there was even a single penny misplaced she would find it.

Sesshomaru could not have been happier.

Kagome loved her new job, she got to dress professionally, and she would make enough money each month to support her entire family, meaning all the money her parents made could go into the shrine. Her friend from high school Sango worked in public relations and had bribed her supervisor so that she could get the same lunch hour as Kagome.

Every day Kagome worked tirelessly only stopping for a lunch hour spent at a little bistro across the street from the giant office building, most times the girls packed a light lunch, but the bistro served the best jasmine tea either of them ever tasted. Fridays had even once again taken a new tradition.

On Fridays the stoic president of the company Sesshomaru took a lunch break.

Never before had anyone heard of that happening, sure there had been lunch meetings with clients, and there had been many times that Jakken had brought lunch from whatever place that Sesshomaru desired that day, but he was known to eat either in front of the computer screen or while looking over paperwork. Now however, every Friday found him dragged from the building at lunch time to a nearby park where Kagome would stuff him full of edible delights packed into a sturdy bento box, and of course there was chocolate milk.

Sesshomaru was slowly becoming used to this life, spending a long lunch with Kagome on Fridays seemed to help him wind down from the stress of the week, he even started taking Saturdays off, he still went in for a few hours on Sunday to check up on the weekly reports being mailed out to the investors on Mondays. Many Fridays found Sesshomaru returning to his office and not being able to focus on anything, his mind having already clocked out for the weekend.

One Friday in particular Kagome was approached by a co-worker, one of the other accountiants approached her, a man named Miroku. He was desperate to get a chance with sango, he claimed that sango was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, and so far none of his usual methods of seduction had worked on her. Kagome found that she felt sorry for the young monk's plight, he seemed to be very much the ladies man so there was no wonder that sango had refused to be wooed by his less then stellar romancing skills.

Kagome seemed to forget what day it was as she convinced sango to go across the street to the little bistro with her, miroku would supprise the two of them there and crash their lunch. They had just sat down at their usual table when miroku showed up eagerly jumping into their conversation. Kagome watched with a smile as the monk tried all his tricks to impress sango, of course none of them worked, but Kagome was overjoyed when he finally let go of trying to woo sango and just chatted casually with her. She knew sango liked the perverted monk, but no woman wanted to be just another conquest, as long as miroku was being himself he would get a chance with the woman he wanted.

Just as Kagome excused herself to head back to the office and leave the pair, another co-worker popped in at their table. Naraku was a man that no one could ever describe as friendly, he worked in the electronic sales division, but right now he was smiling at Kagome with a smile so wide she vaguely wondered if his cheeks hurt. If Kagome was being honest with herself, Naraku was quite attractive, and she was a bit flattered to have his attention. While he made polite conversation Kagome couldn't help the nagging feeling like she was forgetting something. Soon enough she ignored the feeling and found herself deep in debate with Naraku over the current election nominees.

To say that Sesshomaru was upset that Kagome missed their lunch hour was an understatement, by the time he heard from jaken that Kagome told her secretary that she was heading to the bistro for lunch he was absolutely furious. He didn't understand why Kagome made other plans, and didn't include him. He didn't know what he would do if he found out that Kagome was seeing another man, but in a moment of weakness he decided to meet her there. He swooped in on that little cafe ready to destroy his opponent.

Naraku.

How he hated that vile Hanyou, the same Hanyou that was currently the cause of the huge beaming smile across Kagome's face, but seeing as Naraku was at least half demon there was no doubt that the man would be able to smell Sesshomaru's scent lingering on Kagome. In a over the top display Sesshomaru pulled a chair up between Kagome and Naraku, before leaning down ghosting his lips over hers in a greeting, her attention was completely focused on him as he casually threw his arm over the back of her chair, remarking with a smirk.

__

"Double dates, how nice."

While the stoic Inu would never speak the words out loud, he was secretly happy when Kagome leaned into him, a slight blush creeping up onto her cheeks, while he normally would never leave the office for something as frivolous as this, it could be considered an impromptu meeting. He was glad he was here though, who knew what would have happened if he hadn't been here to make a proper claim on _-His Miko-_


	13. Chapter 13

**AN- I know this is a super short chapter but it was only a interlude to the next chapter. I have a question thought, Has anyone read "no one left to love her"? im pondering rebooting that story to try and finish it and was wondering if any of my readers could compare the two.**

It was no surprise that Kagome found the proverbial rusty wheel. She found out that Naraku, while trying to steal her away from Sesshomaru was pretty much committing corporate espionage.

When the facts came to light, it was shown that Naraku's father owned a rival company and the oily spider Hanyou was letting just enough slip at the dinner table to cause the electronic sales to plummet. While Sesshomaru had thought that the decreased sales figures were due to someone tampering with the figures to cover up a theft, he was happy to know that his faith in Kagome had been well rewarded, he was nearly overjoyed to rid his company of such a nuisance.

He in turn rewarded Kagome with two weeks of paid vacation.


	14. Chapter 14

**AN- another one! had to make up for the last very short chapter.**

On Kagome's first week of vacation she had been content to spend as much time as possible with Rin, laying for hours in fields of flowers while Rin picked as many fragrant bouquets as her little hands could hold, fishing in the river on the estate that Sesshomaru's parents owned. Life for her could not have been better.

On the second week of vacation she was eager to get back to her routine, so that Friday she dragged herself to Sesshomaru's office at lunch time carrying the usual two bento boxes with a bottle of chocolate milk under her elbow. While she had barged past Jakken and his incessant squawking over Sesshomaru being in a meeting she was shocked to find Inuyasha and Kikyo the star clients that Sesshomaru was trying to win over.

She stood timidly in the doorway holding the obviously heavy lunches secretly glad when Sesshomaru noticed her. His movements were subtle he pushed his chair away from his desk a bit and turned it slightly to the side motioning Kagome over and extending his hands, while he was offering to take the boxes from Kagome's hands, she misunderstood. He was holding his hands the way he might have held them out to Rin when he was going to lift her up. Kagome assumed that he had opened his arms for her to slip into his embrace, she rushed over setting the lunches on an unoccupied corner of the desk and with a smile she stepped forward into the space between his outstretched hands.

Inuyasha and Kikyo both watched highly interested as Kagome leaned down and gently brushed her lips over Sesshomaru's cheek, they were both astonished when Sesshomaru's hands tightened around kagomes waist twisting her around before settling her firmly in his lap.

To be honest, Sesshomaru had never held Kagome so closely, so it was a bit of a shock to realize how her body seemed to perfectly mold to his, nearly indecent in the way the rounded globes of her backside completely filled his lap. his arms wrapped around her middle anchoring her to him, and he looked at Kikyo and Inuyasha over Kagome's shoulder. The look on his face clearly stating that the meeting was over. His words seemed to shock the whole room. With one sentence he had claimed Kagome, although Kagome didn't know it.

__

"you will have to excuse us, -My Miko- has brought lunch."


	15. Chapter 15

A few weeks later found Kagome with a Friday off, the entire accounting staff had gone to a luncheon to be rewarded for their hard work getting some figures worked out for an upcoming merger, after the lunch the entire staff had been sent home to start the weekend early.

Kagome had gone home to change and visit with Rin a bit before she made her way back to the office to drag Sesshomaru out, Rin wanted to have movie night and there was nothing that Kagome liked more then being all cuddled up on the couch with the two of them like they were a real family.

When she made it to Sesshomaru's office she felt a little underdressed, her jeans and t-shirt got a brief glance from Jakken but even the disgusting toad like demon could appreciate the fact that she was wearing a shirt with a little white puppy on it with the words "dogs do it better". she made her way into the office smiling softly as she greeted Kouga and Inuyasha before working her way thought the massive office and around Sesshomaru's desk. When his hands extended to drag her into his chair with him his fingertips brushed against the exposed inch of flesh between her shirt and the waistband of her jeans.

Something primal called out to Sesshomaru, something deep inside of him that declared it improper for the two other men in the office to see any of Kagome's smooth pale flesh. Something as innocent as a single bare inch of midriff was threatening to have Sesshomaru fly off of the handle. She was his, and he didn't want any other man to look at her body in a way that he knew only he had. He still remembered the night that he had nearly had her, the memories of how her pale skin had nearly shone in the moonlight, how her chest once exposed to his eyes had heaved with every panting breath she took. So this solitary inch of exposed flesh was intimate to him, it was his.

Sesshomaru dragged Kagome's body towards his a bit roughly, one of his arms winding around her waist to block the other males view of her exposed flesh. He wanted to mark her as his. Wanted to just give her neck a little nip, a tiny mark that would announce to the world that she belonged to him. Instead he locked eyes with Kouga and kissed her neck, it was a possessive move all the same, his lips pressing down into the junction of her neck and shoulder before brushing up the side of her neck.

He complemented how nice she smelled, knowing that both Inuyasha and Kouga could smell his scent lingering on her skin.

Later that night she would discuss the fact that like a dog he is possessive, and that his posturing in front of his brother is worthless, there would be no way that Inuyasha would ever steal her away.

Although he will never admit it, he still worries about Kouga.


	16. Chapter 16

**AN- I know that its been a while since Ive updated, I hope that this chapter was worth the wait.**

Sesshomaru hated business trips, he especially hated trips that he had to go to alone, even Jakken had been unable to clear his schedule so quickly. So once again Sesshomaru had been forced to go to some far away country all alone to make business deals that he was only vaguely interested in.

He had let Kagome watch Rin for the few days that he was gone so that kaede could have a bit of a vacation, so when he came home he found his house achingly empty. Kagome had apparently taken Rin to stay at the shrine because his house was not only empty, it was cold. Kagome's soothing herbal scent was long gone. Sesshomaru realized that even with as much as he wanted nothing more then to lay down and sleep his jet lag away his body ached for Kagome's touch.

He ached for her in many ways, ways that were in his eyes dishonorable.

She was a Miko, her innocence and her purity were of the highest importance, and as much as Sesshomaru wanted to claim her, to make her his own, he never did. He settled for their little almost relationship, he settled for holding her close while they watched movies with Rin, settled for holding her hand in his when they walked together. So many times he thought about what she would do, how she would react if he simply stole her away and took what she had offered to him that fateful night while they lay pressed together under the moonlight.

For now he shakes the thoughts away, he knows that there is a little festival taking place at the shrine, and he knows that showing up even for a little while will mean so much to his precious Rin, and even more to _-His Miko-_

Every year Kagome's shrine held a festival to celebrate the truce forged nearly five hundred years ago between the Inu and wolf clans.

He arrived there while the festivities were still young, couples were holding hands children were laughing. Life here was good, and for now Sesshomaru wound his way through the throngs of people looking for the one woman he wanted to see.

He knew Rin would be dressed up for this event, he had even helped pick her part out of the list of those available. Rin would be playing the young shrine madien who had been the one to risk her life to create a truce between the two clans which allowed her sister to marry the man she loved.

Kikyo would be playing that sister, a Miko who was promised to a member of the wolf pack, but who fell in love with a lowly Inu Hanyou. It was only fitting that Inuyasha would be playing the Hanyou.

Kouga of course was playing the leader of the wolves, and Sesshomaru's own father was playing the leader of the Inu, it was fitting that the two Yokai families had carried on this tradition.

Sesshomaru easily lost himself in the nostalgia of the yearly tradition he had been celebrating since he was small. He even stopped to buy a little trinket for Rin.

It was not until he slipped his wallet back into his pocket that he saw the one thing that ruined his seemingly perfect mood. _-His Miko-_ was being rather friendly with a particular wolf, and she was even dressed as the lead female of the wolf clan. Sesshomaru could not begin to explain the way he felt.

Betrayed. He would use the word betrayed if he was asked.

He nearly lost it when he watched Kouga tuck a strand of hair behind Kagome's ear, he wanted to murder the wolf for touching her so intimately, like a lover would, but then to be honest with himself he didn't treat her nearly as well as he should. Time seemed to nearly stop as he stood blatantly staring at Kagome and Kouga, maybe she wanted someone who would openly flaunt their love for her, somewhere in the deepest recesses of his mind he was jealous.

Sesshomaru was a quiet man, and even as a child he had been physically distant from other people, he could have claimed that he was distant because he grew up without his mother, but the simple fact was that he was not good at showing emotions, he never had been. He knew that he loved Kagome, and he hoped that one day she would decide to leave the shrine and the miko life behind, but none of that could make him touch her so openly as the wolf was doing.

The cold nearly unfeeling Inu clenched his hands into fists as he watched the pair, his heart beating so fast in his chest that it was beginning to hurt. There were so many things that he wanted to do right now, but he knew that he couldn't, Kagome would never forgive him if he made a scene. If he was totally honest with himself, while his relationship with Kagome had somehow changed, and even thought it was more like a real relationship, he had never asked Kagome to stop seeing Kouga, because to be honest he just assumed she would anticipate his needs like she always had. He wondered for a second if she truly understood how much he wanted her, but for now all he wanted was to maim the wolf for touching what was his. Kagome was _-His Miko-_ and nothing would change that fact, a nagging thought made itself present in his mind, that maybe one day she would leave the shrine behind to be someone else's woman, while she would always until the end of time be _-His Miko-_ he had to admit that one day she could be _-someone else's woman- _. the thought was painful in its bitter honesty, but true none the less.

His face was slowly twisting in rage, his eyes beginning to bleed crimson, his instincts screamed at him to pin her against a tree and take her, that deeper more animalistic side of him didn't care if everyone at the festival watched him claim her body as thoroughly as she had claimed his heart. However his rational mind was faster then his instincts, his aura flared out to meet hers harshly, when she looked up straight into his eyes she knew something was wrong. Kagome easily pulled away from Kouga and made her way to him, her hands reaching out to comfort him in any way she could.

Sesshomaru hissed as her hands came in contact with his biceps, her questions going unanswered as she peered up into his face, he had no way to explain his anger, his fury, or most of all his hurt. His hands grabbed her and pulled her away from the crowds, he didn't let go of her until they were hidden from view, he did not want the people enjoying the festival to see such a private moment.

Kagome could nearly taste his anger, nothing she did to try and soothe him worked, all it did was make him even more angry. Quickly she was reduced to tears, Sesshomaru chastised her for being so close to Kouga, berated her for how she had apparently been throwing herself at the wolf.

__

"The filthy wolf touched your neck Kagome."

Suddenly everything made total sense, she knew that Sesshomaru was a Inu Yokai, so it only made sense that he was ruled by instincts. Letting a demon male touch her neck had been a clear sign of submission, and a proper woman would only be submissive with a member of her pack who was above her status, or with her mate. Kagome realized that inadvertently her actions had said one of two things, either she was a member of Kouga's wolf pack, or she was Kouga's woman, and while she was neither Sesshomaru could only trust his instincts.

Her movements were slow under Sesshomaru's angry crimson gaze, she slowly tilted her head to the side pulling her hair over to one side to bare her slender neck to the demon before her. While she had let Kouga touch her neck, she right now was baring her jugular for Sesshomaru, she hoped he would understand the message she was trying to make. Her heart beat loudly in her chest as she physically made it clear how much more she valued Sesshomaru over Kouga.

Sesshomaru fisted his hand in Kagome's hair, pulling her head roughly to the side, with the entire expanse of her smooth pale neck exposed to him he calmed a bit, as his breathing evened out he took the time to sniff at her neck. He could smell her blood pulsing under her skin, he could feel her power coursing through her veins. His nose brushed against the artery in her neck, knowing as well as she did that he could end her life with one simple brush of his fangs against her skin, but instead he chose to let his long tongue dart out and flick against the pulse hammering under her skin. To say it was erotic to feel her life blood pulsing under his tongue was an understatement, this was sinful, painfully so.

His kisses were slow and soft against her skin, he could not stay mad at her for long and they both knew the argument was over as Kagome's body relaxed under the tender ministrations of the dangerous Yokai before her. He nipped her flesh as he whispered words of praise for her proper behavior, he should have apologized but they both knew he was sorry, forgiveness was also a surety.

His movements were too sudden for Kagome to even react, before she had a chance to blink Sesshomaru's fangs were buried in the tender flesh that connected her shoulder to her neck. As she opened her mouth to ask why the stoic man before her decided to pretend he was Dracula, Sesshomaru gathered her into his arms, his hands gentle as he stroked her hair.

Much later that night Kagome found herself falling asleep once again on Sesshomaru's plush couch, as he lifted her body with a practiced ease to carry her to the bed in the guest room she swore he said _"I wish I could truly make you mine little Miko."_


	17. Chapter 17

**AN- I think you all might hate me for this chapter, just when everything was going so good... poor kagome.**

Sesshomaru had marked _-His Miko-_ and Kagome's Miko studies had taught her that among most demons, canine types especially biting was a form of dominance, she was even taught how to properly tilt her head in submission. It was however something that could very well have saved her life, it had saved Kikyo's life once. Kagome always wondered why demons bite, why they need to assert that dominance.

No one would answer those questions for Kagome. Not on her first day back to work with a bandage covering the hickey like mark on her neck that Sesshomaru's bite had left behind. She was not upset about the mark, even thought Sesshomaru had bitten her in a fit of rage, she couldn't bring it in her to be upset about his instincts. Her mother was outraged and thought that Kagome should be as well, but the only thing that she was even a bit upset about was the fact that the bruised flesh of her neck was still discolored, while the swelling and pain had been near instantly gone the mottled bruise was not fading at all.

In fact it wasn't until nearly a week later that Kouga was forced to explain.

Kagome headed to the top floor of the company, where Sesshomaru's office was, as she passed by Kouga's office she popped in to say hello, it was an understatement to say that she was just merely confused when Kouga congratulated her. She laughed nervously for a moment feeling like she was left out of a joke or something, but when her laughter died down she asked him to explain.

Kouga was frank in only the way a close friend could be, he spoke honestly when he told Kagome that he didn't think Sesshomaru would have ever marked her, Kouga had expected Kagome to be wearing a huge diamond ring and to be planning a lavish human wedding. When pressed as to why, Kouga spoke in an almost pained manner, he spoke softly as he told her that Sesshomaru had waited so long, hoping to spare Kagome's Miko purity.

Kagome was astonished, for a few moments excited. She had been marked. There were always rumors about how a demon mating rite would cause a human to meet the life expectancy of their demon mate, but no one ever seemed to be able to elaborate, it always came about that there were too many folk lore's and not enough fact.

As far as either Kagome or Kouga knew legend claimed that a mating between the natural enemies of a Yokai and a Miko would always end in disaster.

Kagome didn't care about what the legends said all she seemed to be able to think about was the growing feeling of just being property, as the seconds ticked by, she seemed to feel like cattle, little more then a possession. She wondered why she wasn't good enough for a title, fiancee or girlfriend would have been decent enough, instead she had the feeling like she had been branded like a stray cow.

Kagome simply hated that feeling.

If only she had waited to hear Kouga say that the mark clearly claimed her as Sesshomaru's _-intended-_.

Kagome strode into Sesshomaru's office with a fury so fierce that it was tangible, her aura swirling around her chaotically. She screamed at the silver haired man behind the desk, venom wrapped around her words as she screamed about how she was marked, and a possession, when Sesshomaru said nothing to defend himself. Kagome met his eerie silence with one of her own as she thought about what would resolve this situation.

She asked him to remove the mark.

Sesshomaru didn't think he could, he felt like it would be like getting engaged but returning the ring. What he didn't quite understand was how could he claim her if he didn't let others know that she was taken?

When there was no action taken Kagome's anger got the best of her. Her Miko powers began to rise up, lighting her in an ethereal glow, she was shocked for a moment as the mark on her neck began to burn for a second before it disappeared. It took a moment for her to realize that she had purified the mark right off, she however was too angry at the moment to even care, with an angry huff and a dramatic door slam she had turned her back and walked out on the man who loved her.

He nearly broke watching her blatant rejection, according to her actions she didn't want anything to do with him. Her refusal had been crystal clear, and for once in her life her actions had not been contradicted by her words. Kagome was known for her bad body language, and Sesshomaru had long ago learned to listen to her words, not how her body spoke or the way that her words sounded, but there were no proclamations of love, or speeches about taking things slow and dating first, instead she said nothing and let her actions speak for her.

Sesshomaru let a cold emotionless mask slip over his features as he exploited the numb feeling inside, he took out his heartbreak on a company he was trying to take over, by the time the day was over he had plundered the other company, his hostile take over worked wonders when he was too numb to hold any pity for his rivals.


	18. Chapter 18

**AN- I know that its been a while since Ive updated, but between getting a new computer and working on getting things ready for comic-con ive been super busy, I know that this chapter is sad- but I promise that I will leave you with a much happier one before I take my leave for Con.**

In the days that followed Kagome found her calls going unanswered, her emails being unread and when she knocked on the door to Sesshomaru's house she found that there was no one home.

For weeks this went on, she seemed unable to contact Sesshomaru at all, his brother would tell her that Sesshomaru was none of his business. She couldn't seem to catch him at work, or at home, in her mind it was seemingly impossible to reach him, like he had just plain disappeared.

It was near heart breaking to think that the man she loved wanted nothing to do with her because of a simple misunderstanding.

Kagome wanted so badly to have another chance, it was only on accident that she had removed the mark anyways, she would have never done anything intentional to hurt or anger Sesshomaru, but she continued to be haunted about how she had inadvertently walked away from the most important thing in her entire life.

It was the middle of a weekend afternoon when she decided to drive to the one place she knew that Sesshomaru could and would use as a sanctuary, she borrowed her mothers car and drove all the way to his parents country estate, the drive was long and it was dusk before she finally found her way there, but all that mattered to her was that she could try and convince Sesshomaru just how wrong she had been when she walked out of his office that day.

The seconds seemed to stretch into forever as she walked up the long path to the front door, her footsteps seemed to echo as she moved, each footstep ringing out with her sadness. Kagome knocked several times, waiting for an answer, she nearly jumped for joy when Kaede opened the door, shock hardly visible on the older woman's face. Kagome nearly kissed the nanny, she was simply that excited, she knew that if Kaede was there, then by proxy Rin would also be there, and she knew with all her heart that Sesshomaru would be there.

Tears pooled in Kagome's eyes against her will as Kaede sadly explained the one thing the young Miko didn't want to hear, Kaede's face contorted with pain as she relayed the specific instructions she and all the house staff had been given, no one was to speak to kagome unless it was to send her away, and more importantly kagome was not allowed into the house.

With a great pain in her heart that was clearly shown in her eyes, Kaede asked the now crying kagome to leave the premises.

Kagome wanted to accept this decision, she wanted to show enough respect for herself to hold her head high and do as she was asked, so even thought there were tears streaming down her face she turned without saying goodbye and began to walk away from the house and back towards her mothers' car. Every step she took, every inch she moved away from the house that held the people she loved felt like a mile, but she loved Sesshomaru enough to respect his wishes.

If he truly wanted nothing more to do with her, she would just have to accept it, she refused to shame the both of him by running to him and falling to her knees to beg.

She paid no attention to the sounds of a scuffle behind her, had she not been so pointedly ignoring it she might have wondered if all the staff had gathered to watch her make the walk of shame. One hysterical scream broke her from her own sorrow filled thoughts. _"Mama! Don't leave!"_

Kagome hardly had time to turn around before Rin broke away from Kaede; she dropped to her knees as she caught the child in a tight embrace, Kagome's heart clenched painfully as she realized that this child, the little girl she had helped to raise from an infant was currently distraught over Kagome's absence.

There were no words she could use to describe the ache that filled every cell of her body when the sobbing and hysterical little girl caught her breath to ask kagome something that made her heart stop.

The always cheerful child asked simply, if kagome left because she no longer loved Sesshomaru, did that mean that she no longer loved Rin as well?

There were no words kagome could use to explain, no way that she could make this little child to understand just what had happened. Sesshomaru's step mother was the savior this time, she had approached the crying pair quietly and offered soothing words of a parents unconditional love for their child just as kagome stuttered to find the right words. With a few near whispered sentences she had calmed all the fears of the young girl and with only a tiny bit of prodding convinced the child to run along to play.

Kagome however was now face to face with a woman she had considered a second mother, a woman who she had often turned to for advice, someone she could confide in, the disappointment clear in her eyes stung Kagome's skin as if she had been slapped.

Kagome wanted to hide from what this loving woman had to say, her legs ached to run away from any further heartache that could be caused, but in the end she was shocked when she knelt down, pulling aside the collar of her shirt to expose the mark that Sesshomaru's father had placed on her skin.

No words were needed, kagome understood from just once glance at the mark that it was a necessity, suddenly she realized just how much she must have hurt Sesshomaru, she ached to feel his love, wanting nothing more then to be enveloped in his embrace once more. Sorrow created a dull ache in the pit of her stomach, but instead of letting despair swallow her whole she stood tall and proud, she loved Sesshomaru enough to suffer in silence, he didn't need to see her tear stained face, and most of all she loved him enough to know when to walk away, if he ever chose to give her another chance she knew he would come looking for her.

Right now she gathered up every ounce of her strength to stand tall, she loved the silver haired demon, and today she loved him enough to walk away.


	19. Chapter 19

Months had passed since Kagome had broken down at the country estate where Sesshomaru had grown up, she still missed him terribly but slowly she was learning how to live without her savior.

Slowly she began to take pleasure in the little things, often she still found herself finding something that she wanted to share with Sesshomaru, or seeing things that reminded her of him, but now they brought only as fond smile instead of tears.

Kagome knew that she would love no man as thoroughly as she loved Sesshomaru that much was certain, she still thought it ironic that she didn't realize just how much she loved the demon until she had lost him.

It had been a bright sunny morning that brought her Shippo, a red haired little fox demon whose parents had died in an accident. Kagome found that caring for the small child distracted her from mourning her lost love, and as days had turned into weeks and weeks into months kagome found she was unwilling to part with the tiny kit.

Rin had been the first child she had ever felt that deep motherly love for, and while Shippo would never replace the little girl she had lost when she lost Sesshomaru, kagome was happy to give all the love in her heart to Shippo.

The day Kagome signed the adoption papers to keep the orphaned fox was also the day she began dating again. While she kept most things casual, never going on more then a date or two with the same guy she found a new friendship with Naraku, now that he didn't work for the same company as she did, he had become a much nicer person. Naraku had been the only man she dated who didn't find it strange that a Miko was currently adopting a demon child.

Naraku eventually grew on her, he treated her well and even was kind to Shippo, and she respected that about him.

The relationship with Naraku didn't end well however.

Shippo had asked to take a trip to the coast for his birthday, Kagome had been more then happy to make his wishes come true, she invited Naraku to come along on impulse. For the first time in her life Kagome felt a bit adventurous, she decided to forgo the modest one piece bathing suits that she normally wore; her miko purity and extreme modesty had never seemed to help her so she decided to live with a tiny little wild streak.

When the three of them had walked out onto the sandy beach for the first time, Kagome eagerly stripped out of her sundress and exposed the bikini she purchased for the occasion. She thought it was incredibly modest compared to what the other women on the beach were wearing but both Shippo and Naraku stared at her with their mouths open.

Shippo soon wandered off to begin building sand castles, but Naraku stood there staring at Kagome, he never thought he would see her wearing something so revealing, more shocking was the fact that she was exposing the one thing he never thought would mar her porcelain flesh.

Kagome had a tattoo.

The purest and most innocent Miko anyone had ever laid eyes on had a tattoo.

Naraku couldn't believe his eyes for a few movements, but right there on her hip was the proof, permeate ink forever embedded into her skin just begged to be looked at. Sadly Naraku assumed it was some sort of bad prank, after all why would Kagome have gone through such great lengths to take off the mark Sesshomaru had given her, when she herself was branded with the crescent moon?

When he asked her about it Kagome told a story of when she turned eighteen and became an adult, she wanted something to signify a new beginning, she chose the new moon and had it forever marked into her flesh. When she got it done she hadn't given a second thought to how similar it was to the crescent moon that Sesshomaru had adorning his forehead.

Naraku had promptly broken up with her, claiming that no demon would ever be able to touch her with that mark claiming who she really belonged to.


	20. Chapter 20

Three days after breaking up with Kagome, Naraku showed up at Sesshomaru's office, the Hanyou asked for forgiveness.

Half way through the apologies Sesshomaru had interrupted to bitterly remind Naraku that Kagome had purified the mark right off of her skin before turning and walking right out of his life. When Naraku continued to apologize it caught Sesshomaru's attention.

He asked Naraku to tell him everything.

A few hours later after a deep discussion, Sesshomaru found himself aching for _-His Miko-_ he knew now that she was his, she had always been his. He hated himself for ever letting her walk out of his life, pride, instinct, and unspoken feelings had all played a part in the hurt they both felt.

For almost twenty years the two had been inseparable, their lives intertwined in more ways then could be counted, and while everything had been destroyed by a simple misunderstanding, Sesshomaru knew that Kagome would see it all as some sort of miracle, because now if either of them wanted to make peace, wanted to try to regain what they once had they both would have to come clean about everything. Each one would strive for a clean slate, and in doing so they would have to admit just how deep their feelings ran for each other, Sesshomaru dreaded it, but he knew that if he ever wanted to hold her in his arms again he would have to admit that for so many years he had struggled to keep her purity, he refused to be the one to taint her blindingly pure soul.


	21. Chapter 21

It had been a year from the time that Kagome had walked out on Sesshomaru and the day that he took Rin to the park.

It was easy enough to pretend to accidentally run into Kagome; she loved this park, when he saw her walking to the playground a smile crossed over his face.

Dread pooled in his stomach as he watched her push the swing that shippo was sitting on, his heart began to beat wildly in his chest as he small kit referred to her as mommy.

It was Rin who urged him onwards, she knew Shippo from school, and it seemed the entire student body knew about how the beautiful shrine maiden had adopted the poor orphan. As Rin explained what she knew of the events that lead Kagome to adopting shippo he felt his heart lighten, and for the first time in a year he relaxed.

A nearby vendor was Sesshomaru's first stop; he knew that there were so many things that chocolate milk could say that he simply could not explain. Bottle in hand he made his way to _-His Miko-_. His hands found her shoulders and he twirled her around to face him.

He watched as shock, then hurt, then anger and lastly a tiny bit of hope crossed her features as she took in his imposing presence. Shippo and Rin headed off to play, so they might avoid the chaotic air that surrounded Sesshomaru and Kagome, their auras swirled around them, each battling for dominance.

His fingers twitched as he held back the urge to touch her, instead he held up the bottle of milk. She looked puzzled for a moment before he twisted the bottle around so she could see the label, when she smiled happily he understood everything.

Kagome was chocolate milk.

He knew he would never be able to explain it to her if he tried, but everything made sense to him, this was his epiphany. Kagome needed a label; she needed to know what she was and where she belonged. Kagome didn't need cryptic marks or fancy designs; all she needed was a plain label to tell that world what she was, because as far as Sesshomaru knew no one would drink strange unidentified brown liquid from a bottle, no matter how thirsty they were.

During the time that Sesshomaru stared at Kagome while having this brilliant realization Kagome had began to fidget under his intense gaze, when she let her fingers dip under the hem of her shirt to scratch an itch on her hip time seemed to stop.

Sesshomaru roughly grabbed Kagome's hand as he pulled her shirt up to expose the tattoo that had in essence brought him to this place.

There under his fingers was the exact mark that Sesshomaru had been hoping for, clear as day there was a blue crescent moon on Kagome's skin, he brushed his fingers over the mark, a tiny smile pulling his lips as he stared at it.

Her voice was incredibly soft when she explained just why she had gotten it, admitting that maybe subconsciously it was because of him, he wanted to believe that and she could clearly see that upon his face, when she smiled at him he did something that brought tears to her eyes.

Sesshomaru dropped to his knees, he was not every one for public displays but he wrapped his arms around Kagome's tiny waist and pressed his lips to her tattoo, for her this meant so much, she didn't need any words to explain just what he needed in this moment, he had come so far to get to this moment. He had to overcome his hate for public affection, had to lower himself to be on his knees in front of the woman he loved, and most of all she knew that it was killing him to try and apologize, a man like him never had to say he was sorry.

Kagome tried to sniffle away her tears, a smile playing over her lips as she let her fingers slip through Sesshomaru's silver locks, she loved this man there was no doubt about it, and she regretted ever removing his mark, even if she had done it on accident.

She closed her eyes for a few moments before she lifted her free hand drawing her hair to one side, when she opened her eyes to tell him that she wanted try everything again she saw the last thing she ever expected from the demon in front of her, he was holding a black box with a ring inside.

It was a beautiful ring, she had to admit that much right away, it was not some overly sized flashy ring. She was sure that the man before her had spent some time picking it out, making sure that it was something that she not only would like but that would fit her personality and style.

Sadly, Kagome did not want this ring, she knew now that Sesshomaru didn't under stand the situation at all. Deep in her heart she knew that she had been marked because of instincts, because this man she loved had deeper urges that this ring could not satisfy, she was afraid that if she and Sesshomaru married that his instincts would never be satisfied.

Her body ached for his touch as she pulled away from him, her voice was soft and timid as she explained to him the situation, and this ring would not solve all their problems. When she noticed that his eyes strayed from her own orbs to glance at the exposed skin of her neck she knew for sure that things were just not going to work out like this.

Kagome called out for Shippo, as she told the small child that they were heading home, she watched as Rin moved to leave with her and shippo, as much as she would love to have the little girl come home to stay the night with her like she used to so many times before she knew that she couldn't take someone's child away from them. Before she had a chance to think of a way to let Rin down easily soft words broke through her thoughts.

__

"I will be at the shrine to pick up Rin in the morning."

Kagome smiled brightly because if Sesshomaru trusted her to keep rin for the night, she knew that there might still be a chance for her and the demon after all.


	22. Chapter 22

**AN- no this is not the end to this story- if I can I will post more tomorrow, but if not then I wont be able to post until next week. enjoy!**

The wedding was small and intimate, they had a traditional wedding and it was just family and very close friends who attended. Sesshomaru had closed down his whole company the Friday before they were to be married, and he let his whole staff know that the next day he would be marrying his long time love, Kagome. There had been a lot of well wishers, and many more that had been envious, it was rumored that a wedding like this was once in a life time.

They were married under the boughs of the Goshinboku, the shrine grounds were decorated beautifully, and each the bride and the groom looked like they had came right out of a fairytale.

Weddings like this were much more rare then everyone thought, this was more then once in a lifetime, this wedding was something that had never been heard of, a Miko marrying a demon was something that no one had ever seen before, and there were no records of something like this happening, so in reality they were making history.


End file.
